Method and apparatus for forming openings in woven fabrics



Allg- 1955 R. v. HAVICZAN ETAL METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR FORMING OPENINGSIN WOVEN FABRICS Filed Aug. 7, 1951 \NVENTOR S Roryrnon d VI Howie an yJacob P! Treciokcts ATTORNEY United rates Patent l /iETlilflll) ANDAPPARATUS FOR FORMING UPENTNGS 1N WOVEN FABRICS Raymond V. Havican,Waterbury, and Jacob P. Treciokas, Uairvilie, :Conn assignors to ScovillManufacturing Company, Waterbury, tjonn, a corporation of ConnecticutApplication August '7, 1951, Serial No. 240,643

3 Claims. (Cl. 164-86) This invention relates to a method and apparatusfor forming openings in woven fabrics for the purpose of laterassembling a rivet and burr member into such openings.

In the past considerable difficulty has been experienced in providingsuitable openings in woven fabric material, particularly work clothingsuch as denim, for the purpose of setting rivets and burrs forreenforcing the seams and corner constructions of heavy work or playgarments. It has been customary to pierce holes in fabric material whichhas cut the strands of the fabric surrounding the hole with theconsequent weakening of the fabric in the area of the rivet setting.Other attempts have been made to pierce the cloth with a sharply pointedinstrument, but this method has distorted the cloth about the piercedhole, and also the hole would usually close up after the tool wasremoved making it diflicult for the operator to find the opening for thepurpose of later assembling a rivet and burr therein.

One of the objects of this invention is to pierce or stab an openinginto multiple plies of fabric material in such a manner that the fabricabout the piercing tool will first be distorted and stretched in the actof piercing and then compressing the distorted fabric about the piercingtool into a compact annulus to maintain the opening in the fabricmaterial after the tool has been removed.

A further object of this invention is to provide a mechanism capable ofpiercing or stabbing openings through several plies of heavy fabricwithout cutting or mutilating the threads, and which openings will beretained in the fabric material after the material has been removed fromthe piercing mechanism to facilitate the assembly of the rivet and burrin the fabric opening in a different machine.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will appear more fullyfrom the following description, particularly when taken in conjunctionwith the accompanying drawing which forms a part thereof.

in the drawing:

Fig. l is a vertical sectional view of a device embodying the inventionshowing the tools separated and ready to receive the fabric to bepierced.

Fig. 2 is a View similar to Fig. 1 showing the tools in an intermediateposition in the act of piercing a hole in a piece of fabric.

Fig. 3 is a similar view showing the tools at the end of their workoperating stroke, and

Fig. 4 is a section through a piece of fabric in the plane of thepierced hole showing the results of the method employed by the aboveillustrated tools and showing a burr and rivet associated therewith inposition for assembly.

Referring now to the drawings, the letter A designates generally a punchunit and the letter B designates a die unit. The punch unit A isattached to the end of a plunger it) by means of a set screw 11, theplunger being guided in the head portion 12 of any conventional fastenersetting machine.

The punch unit A consists of a punch holder 13 supporting a piercingpunch or stabbing tool 14 similar to an awl and which is held in placeby a set screw 15.

The stabbing tool or punch is of cylindrical shape for substantially itsentire length and terminates in a conically pointed end 16. Surroundingthe punch holder 13 is a movable punch sleeve 17 held in place upon thepunch holder 13 by means of a cross pin 18 having its opposite endsslidably engaged in opposed longitudinal slots 19 provided in the sidewalls of the sleeve 17. The lower end of the sleeve has a restrictedopening 20 through which the stabbing punch is projected, and the tipend of the pointed end 16 of the punch normally extends about beyond thelower face 21 of the punch sleeve 17. Both the punch holder and punchsleeve are provided with intermediate circumferential flanges 22 and 23,respectively, between which is compressed a relatively light coiledspring 24 that holds the punch sleeve in normal extended position uponthe end of the punch holder 13.

The die unit B consists essentially of a stationary die member 25 thatis permanently held in a bed plate 26 forming a part of the fastenersetting machine as by means of a cap screw 27. The die member 25 isprovided with an intermediate cylindrical portion 28 upon which isslidably fitted a movable die sleeve .29 and held to a restricted axialslidable movement on portion 28 as by means of opposed guide pins 31)projecting into opposite longitudinal slots 31 provided in intermediatecylindrical die portion 28.

The die member 25 is also provided with another intermediate cylindricalportion 32 of smaller diameter than portion 28 and terminating in areduced section 33 providing for an intermediate shoulder 34therebetween. The reduced section 33 is slidably fitted in a restrictedopening 3d provided in the upper closed end 36 of the die sleeve 29. Theclosed end 36 of the die sleeve 29 is formed with an annular projection37 surrounding the opening 35 and providing a work engaging face 38 atits upper end.

As shown in Fig. 1 the die sleeve 29 is normally disposed in itsuppermost position relative to the die member as by means of arelatively heavy coiled spring 39 compressed between the closed end 36of the sleeve and shoulder 4d formed between sections 23 and 32 of thedie member in the normal extended position of the sleeve 29 there willbe provided a recess 41 in the closed .end 36 of said sleeve as definedby the opening 35 above the upper end of the reduced section 33. Thereduced section 33 is provided with a bore 42- of a size comparable tothe diameter of the stabbing punch 14 in the punch unit A.

Operation In the operation of this machine a piece of fabric 43 (usuallyof several plies) that is to be pierced will first be placed on theupper face 38 of the die sleeve 29 in the position where a hole is to beprovided. When the machine is set in operation the plunger shaft ill)will carry the plunger unit A downwardly whereupon the extended pointedend in of the piercing punch will first slightly penetrate the fabric tothe position where the work face 21 of the punch sleeve 1'"? will engagethe fabric and clamp it against the die sleeve face As the punch holderfurther descends the pointed end 16 of the piercing punch 14 will pierceor penetrate its way into the fabric while the punch sleeve 17 isreceding upwardly relative to the piercing punch and at the same timethe leading conical end of the punch will carry some amount of thefabric material down into the recess 4-1 of the die unit. As the punch14- further descends it will pass into the bore 42 of the reducedsection 33 to a position where the cylindrical portion of the punch willproject through the mate rial that has been carried down into the dieunit recess 41 in the manner shown in Fig. 2.

Before the punch holder 13 reaches the end of its descending stroke thepunch sleeve 17 will have reached its upper stroke on the punch holder13 as determined by the fact that the upper end of said sleeve 17 willabut against a stepped shoulder 44 positioned adjacent the flange 22 onpunch holder 13, whereupon the face 21 of the punch sleeve 17 willfirmly compress the interposed fabric 43 against the upper face 38 ofthe die sleeve 29. Continued downward movement of the punch sleeve 17will cause the die sleeve 29 to be forced downwardly relative to thelower die 25 against the influence of the heavy coiled spring 39. Duringthis downward movement of the die sleeve 29 that portion of the fabricmaterial 43a crowded in the socket 41 will be forced upwardly out of thesocket 41 by reason of the sleeve projection 37 moving downwardlyrelative to the stationary upper end of the reduced section 33 to aposition where the work engaging face 38 will be flush with the upperend of said reduced section 33. in this state the sleeve 29 will remainat rest and continued movement of the punch sleeve 17 will tightlycompress the previously stretched fabric material about the cylindricalportion of the piercing punch 14 such as indicated at 43b. This isclearly shown in Figs. 3 and 4.

It is to be understood that the punch 14, as it stabs its way throughthe fabric, will not cut or mutilate the fabric threads, but rather willseparate the threads in the woven structure of the fabric. During thispiercing operation the fabric will be distorted downwardly into therecess 41 and somewhat stretched during the intermediate stage of thepiercing operation after which this distorted portion of the fabric willbe compressed upwardly about the punch in a very firm state which uponthe removal of the tool will leave an opening 45 in the fabric that willnot close up but will hold its shape over a period of time and ifanything strengthening the material surrounding the opening 45 for thesubsequent receiving of a rivet and burr member in that part of thefabric.

In the operation of this tool, experience has shown that some amount oflint will result from the piercing operation and accumulate in the dieunit B. To exhaust the tool of this lint, which might otherwise damagethe mechanism, the cap screw 27 that serves to hold the die unit B tothe bed plate 26, is provided with a through aperture 48 terminating atits upper end with an outwardly flared portion 49. This aperture 48 andflared portion 49 lines up with the bore 42 in the die member 25 so thatany lint or other foreign matter that may collect in recess 41 may clearitself from the tool by dropping out through the bore 42 and aperture48.

This compressed annulus of fabric 43b about the open ing 45 will serveto maintain the opening in the fabric for a long period of time as forinstance after the garment is removed from the stabbing machine, storedand then transported to another machine for the purpose of assembling aburr and rivet. A typical burr 46 and rivet 47 is shown in Fig. 4 in aposition ready to be assembled. It will be readily understood that ahole of the character provided in fabric material such as shown in Fig.4 will greatly facilitate the later assembly of any burr and rivet atthe point of garment construction.

One form of the invention is presented herein for the purpose ofexeinplification, but it will be appreciated that the invention issusceptible of embodiment in other forms coming equally within the scopeof the appended claims.

We claim:

1. The method of providing a pierced hole in a woven fabric whichconsists in supporting one side of the fabric in radially spacedrelationship to a piercing punch or stabbing needle operated from theopposite side of said fabric and having a pointed portion and acylindrical portion, clamping said fabric against said support in spacedrelationship to the cylindrical portion of said needle, forcing saidneedle through said fabric centrally of the compressed portion of thefabric and causing the adjacent portion of fabric to be distorteddownwardly within said supported area and around the cylindrical portionof said needle and finally forcing said distorted portion of the fabricupwardly to the common plane of said fabric and compressing thedistorted portion and the surrounding clamped portion to a state lessthan the normal thickness of said fabric about the cylindrical portionof said needle.

2. In a machine for piercing a hole in woven fabric which comprises areciprocating piercing punch having a pointed end and a stationary diehaving a bore for receiving said punch, a movabie sleeve surroundingsaid die, said sleeve having a flat work support face normally disposedahove said die in radially spaced relationship to said punch, meanspermitting said movable sleeve to retract to a position where itssupport face is flush with the upper surface of said stationary die, asleeve surrounding said punch having a flat work engaging face, meanspermitting slidable movement of said latter sleeve on said punch to apredetermined limit against the influence of a light spring, said punchduring the act of piercing said fabric distorting a portion of it belowsaid work support face, and said punch sleeve at the end of itsretracted stroke relative to said punch traveling with said punch tocompress the fabric against said work support face and said die andforcing the distorted portion of said fabric back to a common plane withsaid compressed fabric about said punch.

3. In a machine for piercing a hole in woven fabric which comprises areciprocating piercing punch having a pointed end and a stationary diehaving a bore for receiving said punch, a movable sleeve surroundingsaid die, said sleeve having a flat work support face normally disposedabove said die in radially spaced relationship to said punch, a strongspring means normally maintaining said sleeve support face above saiddie, a sleeve surrounding said punch having a fiat work engaging face,means permitting limited slidable movement of said latter sleeve on saidpunch against the influence of a light spring, said punch during the actof piercing said fabric distorting a portion of it below said worksupport face, and said punch sleeve coincident with the fabric piercingoperation first compressing the fabric against the work support face andtoward the end of the punch stroke moving with the punch and compressingsaid fabric against both the work support face and said die to restorethe distorted portion of the fabric back to a common plane with thecompressed fabric.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,157,754 Benjamin Oct. 26, 1915 1,717,130 Weaver et al June 11, 19291,954,671 Inman et al. Apr. 10, 1934- 2,069,231 Findlay Feb. 2, 19372,394,346 Wiedrnan Feb. 5, 1946 OTHER REFERENCES Ser. No. 41,883, Meyeret al. (A. P. (3.), published May 4, 1943.

